Canmore's social scene meets at the local climbing gym
by Amanda Follett
"Our walls nurture the vision for the experienced and newcomers…In a great sense, ours is a climbing gym amidst an immense living room."
-Vsion Climbing Gym credo
"Oh my god!"
The victory cry comes from somewhere on the other side of the gym and Roxy's two climbing companions snap to attention: "Did you get it?"
"Yeah, but I had to scream like a little girl," laughs the Canmore climber, obviously pleased with her efforts as she rejoins her friends at the problem they're working on.
Roxy and Lydia, strong climbers who have been at the sport for years, have brought their friend Jody, a relative beginner and newcomer to Canmore's Vsion Climbing Gym. Their obvious rift in experience doesn't mean much as the trio encourages one another on the Vsion's steep bouldering routes.
"Bouldering" is a ropeless climbing genre that strips the sport to its most basic moves, exchanging long, lofty climbs for short but difficult problems. While the Vsion does have 30-foot top-roping routes, most people come here to encourage friends, relax on the mats and challenge themselves into performing the toughest moves they can muster on overhanging boulder problems.
Jody MacPherson gets climbing advice from Vsion owner Dung Nguyen.
"I think that's what bouldering offers," gym owner Dung Nguyen says. "You're not just focused with your partner; you're focused with other people on the problems."
The Vsion opened in Canmore just over five years ago and, as the only climbing gym in an internationally renowned climbing community, has become a regular hangout for what Nguyen estimates to be about 30 per cent of the town's population. The gym attracts all levels, from beginners just learning the sport's finer points to sponsored climbers training for the season.
"I think that's the unique ambiance we have here. We have beginners and newcomers to the sport right up to the professionals," Nguyen says of the gym whose walls have hosted everything from children's birthday parties to some of the world's best climbers and propelled local climbers from the Vsion junior team to the Canadian national climbing team.
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Jody MacPherson plans her next move on the indoor wall at Canmore's Vsion Climbing Gym.
The vertical walls of the local climbing gym provide a safe and controlled environment for rookie climbers to learn simple rope, belay and climbing techniques and are often used by school and corporate groups. While Nguyen says he has beginner climbers into their 40s, the gym also teaches children as young as eight to 12-year-olds with the after school program and runs children's camps during winter, spring and summer breaks.
For experienced climbers looking to train for the upcoming summer rock climbing season, Nguyen and local guide Sarah Hueniken run men's and women's "Training for Climbing" programs to push already successful climbers to a whole new level of fitness.
But one of the most important things, says Nguyen, is the gym's unique social ambiance. This is where climbers come out to visit, to challenge one another and to meet other climbers in the community. Even if you arrive at the gym alone, you're unlikely to find yourself climbing without some encouragement from another gym visitor and, if you're lucky, you could experience that perfect feeling of both hands connecting with the elusive finishing hold on a difficult problem.
If You Go:
The Vsion Climbing Gym is located at 109, 109 Boulder Crescent in Canmore's Elk Run Industrial Park. Phone 403.678.8803.
Cost for a drop-in is $15, $10 for members. Gear rentals available at the gym.
The next nearest climbing gym to Canmore is the Banff Centre Climbing Wall. The drop-in fee to the Sally Borden Fitness & Recreation centre provides access to all facilities, including the indoor hot tub - a huge bonus after a hard climb!
Check out the action at the Vsion on Feb. 26 for the Tour de Bloc competition and March 3 for the Mixed Masters indoor dry-tooling competition, which uses ice-climbing tools on the gym's plastic holds.
For more information about Vsion Climbing Gym programs visit www.thevsion.com.
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